Business Expert sounds alarm on comfort-driven business culture

Michael Olumide

Business expert, Public Relations Officer, EDC Alumni Association, Ayodeji Peter Falope, has raised concerns about the prevalence of comfort-driven business culture, warning that it can lead to stagnation, complacency, and ultimately, business failure.

He added that despite growing access to funding, market opportunities, and government support, many Nigerian SMEs are still struggling — and failing.

According to him, a leading SME strategist and 2023 recipient of the Best Business Development Service Provider award at the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC), the biggest threat isn’t external — it’s internal.

“Too many entrepreneurs are addicted to comfort and resistant to change. That’s what kills most businesses,” Falope said on the Access Bank SME Digest radio show on Classic FM.

He compared many small business owners to frogs in gradually heated water — unaware of the danger until it’s too late. The refusal to adapt, he argued, is more damaging than a lack of capital.

Falope emphasized the need for founders to build systems that work without them, create room for constant innovation, and stay in learning mode. “If you’re not learning, you’re already behind,” he warned.

He urged business owners to take advantage of free tools — from YouTube to AI platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini — and to prioritize mentorship and cross-functional collaboration. In his firm, clients who resist digital transformation are charged five times more — not as punishment, but as a wake-up call.

“Pain makes people change faster than advice,” he added.

Falope encouraged entrepreneurs to test one new idea each week and measure its impact.

“Implementation is everything,” he said. “Knowledge without execution is useless.”

In a fast-changing economy, his message is simple: SMEs that refuse to evolve will eventually be left behind.